pain clinic

pain,

n an unpleasant sensation created by a noxious stimulus mediated along specific nerve pathways to the central nervous system, where it is interpreted. The sensation of pain is a protective mechanism that warns of danger without giving too much information about the specific nature of the danger. It initiates nociceptive reflexes.

pain and suffering,

n an element in a claim for damages in a liability lawsuit. It requests compensation to an individual for mental and physical pain and discomfort as a result of an injury.

pain, assessment,

n an evaluation of the reported pain and the factors that alleviate or exacerbate a patient's pain; used as an aid in the diagnosis and the treatment of disease and trauma.

pain, chest,

n pain that occurs in the chest region because of disorders of the heart (e.g., angina pectoris, myocardial infarction, or pericarditis), pulmonary artery (pulmonary embolism or hypertension), lungs (pleuritis), esophagus (“heartburn”), abdominal organs (aerophagia, biliary tract disease, splenic infarction, or gaseous distention in the splenic flexure), or the chest wall (neoplasia, costochondral strains, trauma, hyperventilation, or muscular tension).

pain clinic,

n a multidisciplinary association of health care professionals devoted to the diagnosis and treatment of patients with acute and chronic pain.

pain, deep,

n dull, aching, or boring pain originating in muscles, tendons, and joints. It is poorly localized and tends to radiate.

pain dysfunction syndrome,

n in dentistry, a phrase used to describe a condition in patients who appear to have a psychophysiologic basis for stress overload on the temporomandibular joint. The preferred term is
mandibular stress syndrome.

pain, ghost,

n See odontalgia, phantom.

pain mechanism,

n the network that communicates unpleasant sensations and the perceptions of noxious stimuli throughout the body in association with both physical disease and trauma involving tissue damage.

pain, nerve ending,

n a receptor nerve ending that is relatively primitive and ends in an undifferentiated arborization. The nerve ending for the sensation of pain is a protective mechanism that warns of danger without giving too much information about the specific nature of the danger. The danger stimuli give rise to nociceptive reflexes, or defensive, protective, or withdrawal movements. The nociceptive reflexes supersede other, less urgent, reflexes that are thus inhibited.

pain, projected pathologic,

n pain erroneously perceived to arise in a peripheral region because of a stimulus from end-organs supplying the region (e.g., sciatic pain). Actually the stimulus occurred somewhere along the pain pathway from the nerve to the cortex.

pain, reaction,

n the individual's manifestation of the unpleasant sensation.

pain, referred,

n pain caused by an agent in one area but manifested in another (e.g., pain caused by caries in the maxillary third molar may be referred to the mandible, so the source of pain appears to be in the mandible).

pain stimulus,

n an agent that has the potential to induce pain, whether through chemical, mechanical, or thermal means.

pain, tactile stimuli,

n any of a number of physical sources that may aggravate dentin hypersensitivity, such as dental instruments, toothbrush bristles, ill-fitting oral prostheses, and various personal oral habits a patient may have.

pain, thermal stimuli,

n dentin hypersensitivity related to abrupt changes in temperature of teeth as a result of contact with very cold or very hot foods and liquids, rapid intake of air through the oral cavity, and during professional oral hygiene procedures requiring rapid drying of teeth.

pain threshold,

n the point at which a stimulus causes pain. It varies widely among individuals.

pain, tolerance,

n the maximum pain level an individual is able to withstand.

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pain clinic

Pain management An outpatient facility in which a person with chronic, poorly controlled or intolerable pain–eg, cancer pain, refractory low back pain–can go to obtain physical and pharmacologic therapy for pain relief; PCs are often supervised by a physician–usually an anesthesiologist, neurologist, psychiatrist–trained in pain management.